- Encouraging Your Pastor –

[Abednego+2]

Hebrews 13:7, “Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the Word of God to you”

1 Timothy 5:17, “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching”
____________

We definitely have a lot of special appreciation days in our culture. Some of these would be Boss Day, Secretary’s Day, Father’s and Mother’s Day, Teacher’s Day, and the month of October has been designated as Pastor Appreciation Month. So, have you express appreciation to the Pastor of your church recently? If you haven’t, it’s never too late to say “Thank you” to those in your church, especially your Pastor who faithfully serve the Lord.

I’m sure you have heard about booster shots, which are part of a complete program of vaccinations that protect us against threatening diseases. Moreover, have you ever heard of booster words? Simply put, they are words you say to help others in the fight against discouragement and despair. My brethren, words of encouragement can be “life words” bringing new motivation to a person’s life, especially those faithful pastors, who have been called by God to proclaim His truths to a lost world!

Sometime ago I read an article about a church in Colorado that wanted to encourage its pastor by placing a special article in the church newsletter. The author of the paragraph titled it “Boost the Pastor a Bit.” The article was sent to a print shop, and a typesetter went to work on it. However, when it appeared in the weekly church paper, the headline read, “Boot the Pastor a Bit.” Although we may smile at this humor, many people may feel that way about their pastor. Most pastors take their calling seriously because they recognize they are charged with the awesome responsibility of feeding and teaching the flock of God and overseeing its spiritual welfare.
__________

However, there are too many times when the enormity of their task goes unappreciated. Although they aren’t looking for praise, they do need the encouragement of those who are helped by their ministry. The assurance of prayer, a word of commendation, an expression of love – what reinforcement these can give them! Stop and think for a moment of all the influences that have touched your life spiritually. Probably high on your list of those who have contributed to your spiritual benefit would be a godly pastor. Does your pastor need encouragement? If so, look for ways you can give him a boost and not a boot.
____________

Further reflection:

If your pastor faithfully preaches God’s Eternal Word and tries to live an exemplary life, do all you can to support and encourage him? Of course, no pastor is perfect, and sometimes a careful rebuke may be needed (1 Timothy 5:20); however, a pastor carries an enormous responsibility (Hebrews 13:17), and a faithful man of God is worthy of loving respect and generous financial support. Mark Twain once said he could live for a whole month on just one good compliment! So, when was the last time you specifically and purposefully appreciated your pastor? If you haven’t here are a few ways of showing how much you truly appreciate and value him:

(1) Invite your pastor and his wife for dinner or give them a food shower along with gift certificates to their favorite grocery store;

(2) Take your pastor out to lunch to his favorite restaurant;
(3) Write him a hand-written note of appreciation for who he is and how God has used him in your life;

(4) Be present at Bible Studies and prayer meeting, stay awake during sermons, and turn up for training sessions. It is blatantly disrespectful to have your pastor spend so much time in preparation for his message from the Word of God when only to find 10% of the membership present;

(5) Encourage and invest in your pastor’s professional development by sponsoring training, conferences, a book allowance, pastoral exchanges, and sabbaticals. You will benefit greatly from the refreshing exposure your pastor gets. A pastor that isn’t growing will keep the congregation under-nourished;

(6) Let him know that you appreciate the load he carries: the pressure of caring for sheep and the daily sacrifices he makes for the ministry of your church. Convey that you understand he does more than just show up and preach;

(7) Pray for your pastor in that God will protect him spiritually, that he will be empowered by the Holy Spirit, that his ministry will be Christ-centered, that he will have a passion for lost souls, that he will resist temptation and will give glory to God for his ministry;

(8 ) And please don’t forget your pastor’s wife. She makes as many sacrifices in giving up her husband to ministry opportunities. Send her a note of appreciation, maybe some flowers or a gift certificate. Whatever it is, express your gratitude for the part she plays in the ministry of your local church.
__________

Closing thoughts:

The nature of the service provided by pastors and their families is unique. God has entrusted to them one of the most precious of assignments, the spiritual well-being of His flock. When a pastor becomes ineffective, the very souls of his members are endangered. When eternity is in the balance, we should all be concerned. Pastors and their families live under incredible pressures. They are the ones who perform a wedding one day and possibly a funeral the next. They are the ones who receive phone calls in the wee hours of the night to bring comfort to those in need. They are the ones who may have to make an unpopular decision for the church, but the right decision by God. They are the ones who counsel us during times of trial and comfort us during pain. They are the ones who visit us or a loved one in the hospital.

Furthermore, their lives are played out every day, with the entire congregation and community watching their every move. They are expected to have ideal families, to be perfect people, to always be available, to never be down and to have all the answers we need to keep our own lives stable and moving forward. Those are unrealistic expectations to place on anyone, yet most of us are disappointed when a pastor becomes overwhelmed, seems depressed, lets us down or completely burns out. So, my brethren let’s take the time to encourage our pastors, not only during Pastor Appreciation month, but each month throughout the year.
__________

A pastor leads best when his people are behind him.

[RandyPNW]

I do appreciate the sentiment on this--my brother was a pastor. However, there is another side to this that needs to be told. We have had pastors who have drawn top dollar, with both husband, wife, and daughter collecting at least part of a salary, when our church is very small! We just happen to have a few people in our congregation with a lot of money.

The board has control over how the money is spent. Members basically vote "Yes" every year to the budget, as determined by the board. Sometimes the board wants to take money normally allocated to church expenses and spend on a favorite mission project. Sometimes they want to build a home on the property for the pastor to live in--we did that. Sometimes the board and the pastor fight each other on what money belongs being spent on where! That caused a division in our church.

We have pastor appreciation day, birthday days for the pastors, anniversary days for the pastor, and sometimes someone just pays for them to have a vacation. Should church members really be expected to pay for all this on top of giving to the church? To not give looks like a "slap" against the pastor!

Our current pastor has a 2nd full-time job, and still collects a sizeable salary from the church--a somewhat reduced amount. He used to do Bible Studies, but now puts them off. I think he only trusts himself to lead them. We used to have Thursday night Bible Studies,  as well as Sunday morning Bible Studies. But that was under the previous pastor. Now, with our part-time pastor we have none!

I asked him if we could just meet at the church with a few people for fellowship on set days and at set times, and he said he'd get back to us--never did. I'm the one who's attended the church longest, and have a key. But he doesn't get back to me on these kinds of questions--just puts them off.

Our current pastor is a good and qualified man of God. We can't complain that for most of his life he has not been a full-blown pastor, because we can't get many pastors applying for our church out in the woods, particularly a church of our size. So I'm happy with him. He thinks he's a biblical scholar, but in some ways I know more than he does. I've certainly been a Christian longer than he has.

When I corrected him saying that the 3rd Feast of the year in ancient Israel was the Harvest Feast, he denied it in front of the Bible Study group we had at that time. When I later emailed it to him, he never said a word to me at church. When I finally approached him and asked him about it, he just said he thought I was beginning to "get it."

Now I get it that even pastors and Board members are "human," and deserve the same kind of tolerance God gives you and me *every day.* But that doesn't mean we hand them the steering wheel and let them go in any direction they wish to go. They aren't the "head"--Christ is. There needs to be a diversity of gifts in the church, since we are, individually, myopic and lack information.

What has long concerned me is our dependence, as a congregation, on the pastor as a kind of "king-figure," who controls the messages, the activities, and the goals. The board gives him a rubber stamp, because we do not have many well-qualified for the board either.

I believe a church needs more people representing the word of God to the congregation. Older people can bring messages, and younger people can bring testimonials. We don't need a single man to be paid to do everything, and to control everything. Just my opinion. Otherwise, I completely agree with you.

[col]

  What ever happened to the Bible way of the church meeting together?

Why do the believers not know it?

 The churches follow the RCC pattern rather than Gods Word, which is why they are so weak and rely upon men, money and guns, rather than on the Lord.

 Col

[RandyPNW]

Yes, I grew up in an ultra-formal Lutheran church, where everything was done more ceremonial than real. It seemed "In Name Only," though I know there were some real Christians there.

So yes, we need to get back to the Bible. But the Lutherans are great at worshiping the bible too, and producing a very formal, ceremonial approach to it, reading from it, but not really getting it.

It was more like reciting a creed than expressing heart-felt beliefs. Belief brought salvation--not spiritual conversion. With so many layers of artificial spirituality, you could barely tell what was real and what was pretend.

Yes, let's get back to Scriptures, and let's get back to doing it, and to loving our God, Creator, and Lord. Our faith is not just expressed in acceptance of doctrine, but more, as a placement of our lives and decisions in the hands of God.

[col]

 Yes,
 we could start with this---

Act 20:17  And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church. 
Act 20:18  And when they were come to him, he said unto them, Ye know, from the first day that I came into Asia, after what manner I have been with you at all seasons, 
Act 20:19  Serving the Lord with all humility of mind, and with many tears, and temptations, which befell me by the lying in wait of the Jews: 
Act 20:20  And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publickly, and from house to house, 
Act 20:21  Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. 
Act 20:22  And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there: 
Act 20:23  Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me. 
Act 20:24  But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. 
Act 20:25  And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more. 
Act 20:26  Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. 
Act 20:27  For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. 
Act 20:28  Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. 
Act 20:29  For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. 
Act 20:30  Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. 
Act 20:31  Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears. 
Act 20:32  And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. 
Act 20:33  I have coveted no man's silver, or gold, or apparel. 
Act 20:34  Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me. 
Act 20:35  I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive. 
Act 20:36  And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled down, and prayed with them all. 
Act 20:37  And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him, 
Act 20:38  Sorrowing most of all for the words which he spake, that they should see his face no more. And they accompanied him unto the ship.